Speaker
Sara Vecchio
(INFN Pisa)
Description
We have developed a tomograph for single photon emission imaging (SPECT) of
the breast for the detection of small size tumors. The patient is prone with
a pendulus breast. The SPECT is mounted on a ring that is rotating around
the breast. The breast will be imaged by two opposing detector heads of
approximately 5x15 cm^2 each, with a field of view about 13 cm wide. Each
head is made up of one pixilated NaI crystal matrix coupled to three
Hamamatsu H8500 PMTs with a ''general purpose'' collimator. Detailed
simulations have been made for the optimization and the evaluation of the
detector performance, in terms of detection efficiency and geometric spatial
resolution. Monte Carlo results indicate that tumors of 8 mm diameter are
detectable with a tumour/background ratio of 5:1. First experimental
results on planar images are presented. The rotating ring is now being
assembled.
Author
Sara Vecchio
(INFN Pisa)
